Once relegated to a mere curiosity, the average flying field
might have one person that flew radio controlled helicopters.
It wasn't more than a few years ago that the lone helicopter
pilot was looked upon like the goalie in hockey or a pitcher in
baseball. Sideways glances and "He seems like a nice
enough guy but he's a little strange, we try to leave him alone"
were the norm.
Well those days are over and the R/C helicopter business is
booming! Need proof? The largest R/C event ever was
nothing but helicopters. That's right, IRCHA 2008, amidst
four dollar gas prices, and a faltering economy, drew 780 pilots.
Within the rapidly growing helicopter segment, small electric
helicopters are easily the most prolific. While attending
the Great Planes E-Fest I was given an opportunity to fly the
new Novus series of electric helicopters. They are small,
well built, and from what I found out that day, very agile.
I remember thinking at the time "I hope they send me one of
these to review".
The Novus is available in three versions, the CX which is a
counter rotating beginners model, the FP or fixed pitch, and the
CP or collective pitch 3D model. This article will review
the Novus Fixed Pitch model.
Kit Name:
Novus FP Electric Micro Helicopter Price: $159.99 Main Rotor Diameter: 7.9" (200mm) Flying Weight as tested: 1.8oz
(W/ Battery) Battery used: Included
Speed Controller Used: Included Radio equipment: Included 2.4 Ghz radio
system
8 AA Batteries
Spare battery (optional)
Packaging
Includes nearly everything
Instruction manual
Kit contents
Included LiPo battery
Easy to use charger
I
unpacked the RTF (ready to fly) Novus and sat down with the
instruction manual. I was a bit surprised to see a 35 page
instruction manual for a helicopter that was essentially ready
to fly out of the box. I found out it's because the manual covers both the CX and FP
versions of the Novus.
Great Planes manuals always tend to be above average or better,
and the Novus is no exception. There is a kit inventory,
safety guidelines, spare parts listing, even basic flight
instructions. Even if you think you know all there is to
know about micro-helicopters, if you skip the manual on the
Novus I can promise you that you're in for some head scratching
later.
After reading the parts of the manual that applied to the FP, I
obtained eight AA batteries and installed them in the transmitter.
One area I always pay special attention to in the instruction
manual is the section dealing with the LiPo batteries. The
Novus comes complete with a charger and a LiPo battery.
The charger is the picture of simplicity to use. Plug it
in and it flashes red while charging, when the battery is fully
charged the light turns green and you're done.
Safe practices and common sense dictate that we don't charge the
battery in the helicopter. It's also best not to leave it unattended
while charging.
I charge my LiPo batteries on a metal workbench, away from
combustible materials, and inside a ceramic flower pot. I
also make a point to check on them every 20 to 30 minutes.
Out of the box and RTF
Cute little guy
Included 2.4Ghz transmitter
Battery installation
Under the hood
Metal head and swash
After
reading the instructions I unpacked the helicopter and hooked up the
battery to the charger. While the battery was charging I took
a closer look at the little Novus. The first thing that stood
out was the metal head and swashplate. That wasn't something I
expected on a helicopter in this size and price range and it's nice
to know that longevity shouldn't be a concern (assuming you can
avoid the walls and furniture!). Just incase something does
get in the way, a spare set of blades is included.
Removing the canopy isn't necessary for battery access but I wanted
to check out what was under the hood. There are two tiny
servos and an "all in 1" unit that contains the 2.4Ghz receiver, the
tail gyro, and the electronic speed controller. I hope I don't
need my fat fingers to work on any of this stuff!
The
included transmitter is a 2.4Ghz, 4 channel radio, with analog
trims. The transmitter includes an external charge jack in
case you want to use rechargeable batteries and you have a suitable
charger. This is a thoughtful option and is standard on the
HeliMax transmitters. The HeliMax transmitters don't seem to
be very taxing on battery consumption either, the set I put in the
Novus transmitter are on their second review and 20+ flights and
still going strong.
Tail drive close up
After years of turning on the transmitter first then turning on
the receiver, had I not read the manual in advance I probably
would still be waiting for the two to link up. As the
manual states, you have to plug in the flight battery first,
then turn on the transmitter for the two to link properly.
I thought it might have been a mistake so out of journalistic
curiosity I tried it my way; it doesn't work. Receiver
first, then transmitter. The light on the transmitter will
flash until you bump the throttle stick up a hair then return it
to full down, then it will go on steady and you're ready to fly.
If I hadn't been given a chance to fly the Novus at
E-Fest I probably would have been shocked at the control
responsiveness of the Novus FP. I spend much of my time
flying 50 size nitro helicopters which are big and stable so it
took me a bit of time getting the Novus to do my bidding.
After just a few minutes of terrorizing the cats, children, and
my wife, however, I had things under control.
Before I broke anything or injured anyone I headed out side to
fly a few batteries worth. I was in for my next surprise;
the Novus handles mild wind extremely well! It flew
outside so well in fact that we filmed the review flight outside
in 5 to 7 mph winds and the Novus didn't have any problems.
When flying fixed pitch helicopters I always have to make sure I
don't get the rotor speed too slow or they fall out of the air
before they can recover. The Novus either has more power
than it needs or the small rotor system has a very low inertia
because adding throttle as the helicopter is falling immediately
gets the rotor head back to speed while loosing very little
altitude.
Once I learned not to bang the stick around, flying in my living
room was a lot of fun. Fixed pitch helicopters limit what
you can do as far as aerobatics go, but this is the most
aerobatic and fun fixed pitch helicopter I have ever flown.
I did find myself having to adjust the rudder trim on the
transmitter as the flight progressed and the battery voltage
changed. This isn't unusual for a micro helicopter with
the gyro built into the receiver though and it isn't drastic.
I
had a few encounters with stationary objects and have yet to
do any damage to the Novus. After one such encounter with the
couch however, I thought I had broken or bent something. When
I lifted off again the blades were out of track by about 1/2".
It turns out that it's not unusual, and a quick fix. There are
two links that go between the rotor head and the fly-bar see
saw. When one of the links is off you get the out of track condition,
snap the link back in place and you're off and running again.
The Novus FP is a fun little
helicopter. It comes ready to fly such that all you have
to do is add transmitter batteries, charge the included motor
battery, and go flying. It's very agile, so I would take a
few flights either outside or in a larger room to get the hang
of flying it before trying it in a small living room.
Everyone that I let fly the
Novus said the same things. "Very maneuverable for a fixed
pitch helicopter" and "Wow, it handles the wind very well".
I think that raw beginners should start with the CX version but
anyone that is comfortable flying a CX style helicopter
shouldn't have any problems transitioning to the Novus FP.
HeliMax
Distributed exclusively by: Great Planes Model Distributers
i purchased the novus cp and i would recommend the walkera helicopters with brushless main and tail motors and metal rotor head included for a better value for the money. walkera also has carbon fiber or wood main blade replacements.
Great review. You convinced me to get this heli. I was a little skeptical as many folks were saying the Walkera was better, had the brushless upgraded already, etc. But I have to say, I never got very good at flying my Blade CX2 and was getting very frustrated. I said the heck with it, and bought this little FP heli. And I've actually gotten *good* at flying it, much more so than I ever did with the CX2. I know that makes no sense but the constant input controls required are what forced me to learn, and the light weight of this heli has saved me from many crashes, very little gets damaged. Even able to fly in a light wind.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not flying figure 8's or anything crazy but I'm getting quite comfortable with this. Nice little heli I must say.
-brett
The comments, observations and conclusions made in this review are solely with respect to the particular item the editor reviewed and may not apply generally to similar products by the manufacturer. We cannot be responsible for any manufacturer defects in workmanship or other deficiencies in products like the one featured in the review.
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